Electronics, Lighting, & Gadgets - Magicshine--I want to shorten cables

I have two Magicshines mounted and have about 5 ft of extra cable folded up under my stem and want to get rid of it.

So, I want to shorten the cable from the lamp to about 9".

Can I just buy a compatible plug at RadioShack or an electrical supply house, cut my cable to length and rewire (without soldering) to the new plug?

Or are the MS plugs a non standardized plug.

Would it be better to cut the plug off with 5" of cable, cut off all but 5" off of the cable from the lamp and rejoin (using existing plugs)? What is the best method to do this.

You can probably tell I am not familiar with this type of thing.

I definitely don't want to open up the lamp assembly and rewire/resolder?

Thanks, Dan

P.S. I think the light is great except for the cable length and highly recommend it.

I am in the opposite boat. I want a longer cable on mine as I bought mine early and got the short cable version and I want to leave the battery in my pack while the light is helmet mounted. But luckily now I can pick up an extension cable for it. Sorry I can't answer our questions though. It is a great light for the money though and my only complaint would be the cable was too short, but that has been addressed. It's hard to please everyone, but maybe they should have left the cable length short like the early models and just added an extension cable to each light set so that way everyone would be happy.

Hey u two, why not swap the cables????

Or
Lovetopedal it may be easier to buy the Y cable splitter Geoman sells it must be able to work with only one light. But I think its a standard cable which could be found in a radio shlock:thumb:

Personally, I'd open up the lamp and resolder, but that's just me. Otherwise I'd cut the wire shorter in the middle. Use "liquid electrical tape" right on the wire for waterproofing, then when that's good and dry, add tape.

Hand wired connectors are not going to be waterproof, and in my experience are not very durable either. Not only can water get into the inside of the connector, but they won't mate with the MS female connector's waterproof collar.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Extension-Cable-for-MagicShine-LED-Bike-Headlight_W0QQitemZ280413038677QQcmdZViewItemQQptZCycling_Parts_Accessories?hash=item4149eb6855

Seems like you should just roll it up and zip tie it. Then if you ever change your set up you won't be stuck with a cable too short.

Hey u two, why not swap the cables????




The cable is actually bult into the light head so it would involve some surgery.

FWIW, I just used a velcro strap to secure the excess onto the bottom side of the stem, then wrap the battery cover over the stem so I can't see the excess anyway.